Costa Concordia: new safety measures announced

Details of the Costa Concordia salvage operation were revealed recently

24 April 2012 • 12:00am

Visits to the bridge are to be restricted and ships will have to carry more lifejackets under new cruise ship safety requirements agreed by the industry in the wake of the Costa Concordia disaster.

To be implemented with immediate effect, the measures also make it mandatory for all members of the bridge team to agree the ship’s course before the vessel sets sail. This was just a recommendation under current International Maritime Organisation rulings. The new requirement follows claims that Concordia’s Captain, Francesco Schettino deviated from the ship’s approved route to “salute” the residents on the island of Giglio.

Thirty people died and two are still missing after Costa Concordia capsized off the coast of Giglio in January. A salvage team appointed last week is expected to take 12 months to move the wreck from the rocks it is sitting on.

The three new policies are part of a major operational safety review by the European Cruise Council (ECC) and US-based Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). In February, they made it mandatory for cruise lines to hold the passenger safety drill before the cruise ship set sail.

They come a day after Pier Luigi Foschi, 65, said he will retire from his position as chief executive of Costa Group on July 1, but stay on as chairman and retain a seat on the board of parent company Carnival Corporation. He will also continue to oversee matters relating to the Concordia disaster.

Mark Watts, an ECC spokesman, said the new requirement demands ships store additional lifejackets on deck in “heavily-trafficked” areas. It will be up to cruise lines to decide where that is, based on their individual ships’ designs.

He added that the bridge will be out of bounds to all visitors while the ship is manoeuvring or when increased vigilance is required but will be allowed at other times. Reports have claimed a Moldovan woman was invited onto the bridge by Schettino shortly before the vessel hit rocks and ran aground.

A panel of four maritime experts from the UK, United States and Holland has also been appointed to advise the ECC and CLIA as they continue to review all aspects of operational activity under the safety review.